India to exploit UK tech skills at Midlands car plant

India's Tata group is to exploit UK technology skills in a new automotive engineering and technology development centre near Birmingham.

The Tata group is one of India's largest conglomerates operating in various business sectors including IT, automotive, engineering, chemicals and telecoms. One of its fastest growing units is offshore IT outsourcing company Tata Consultancy Services.

According to the Financial Times, Tata will initially employ up to 150 workers at the $6m plant in the heart of the UK's motor industry near Coventry but plans more than 1,000 jobs when the centre is fully operational.

Tata chairman Ratan Tata told the paper the centre will combine high-technology skills from the UK with low-cost engineering design work in India.

He told the FT: "We would create a focal point for technology that would still have a strong connection with India. The idea is to plug into technology at a higher level than is possible in India."